jet lag

at the moment, i'm in korea. which is sixteen hours ahead of where my parents are, meaning that it's 7 in the morning there and it's 11 at night here. in romania, where i have been and will be returning, it's 4 in the afternoon. hard to keep the differences straight.

i arrived here in the evening a few days ago, and neglected to reset the time on my watch. i don't wear a watch, but figured that with all the traveling i have been doing a watch would be very helpful. with the direction i'm traveling, it's really easy to fall asleep and also easy to wake up early, often sometime between 5.30 and 6.30. when i woke up the morning after arriving, i looked at my watch and it said 1.15 in the afternoon. then i was able to find a clock on the wall that said 5.15 in the morning. a few hours later i opened my computer which is still set to romania time, and by that time it said 1 or 2 in the morning. whoa .. no wonder my body is a bit confused! my mind is too :)

but things haven't been too bad .. i've been able to sleep at least 6 hours every night, and go back to sleep when i wake up early at least a few times. and my siblings (who i'm with) like going to bed sometime between 10 and 11 .. which is very nice for my sleepiness. something i'd like to keep up, as a matter of fact .. going to bed sometime around that and getting up a bit earlier. although 5.30 still seems a bit too early if you ask me. (some others wouldn't agree .. but God made all kinds of people!)

and having problems with sleep is well worth it, if it means that i get to see people that i love. and go new places and experience new things and taste new foods and build relationship and deepen relationship and learn and discover and ... mhmmm. good things. although i am glad that i don't always travel. it's nice to have a place to call home. and the place that i currently call home is a place that i miss now. not so much that i need to buy a plane ticket right now, but enough that i will be excited to return, and that i am reminded to pray for people i know who are still there.

communion

today at our Christmas eve service, i got to take communion for the fourth time in less than two weeks. you might think that's a bit much .. but some people take it every day. and i've been averaging about once a month, so it's nice to have an abundance for a few days. each time, there have been different ideas that God has brought to mind. tonight, i was aware of the weightiness of choosing to follow God.

our paster (the one at my church in salt lake) talked a bit about the gifts that God has to give us. first of all is the gift of His Son. (clearly!) but then there are other gifts, like grace. and forgiveness. and ... the list could go on a long time. and in return, He asks us to give back to Him. to choose Him. to love Him more than we love things, more than we love friends, more than we love family .. to follow Him even if it means leaving much that we love. because He is good and if He wants us to go somewhere, it must be the best place for the next season. not the easiest place, or the warmest place, or the most beautiful place .. but the place where He will grow us and make us more like Him, the place where He will be glorified, the place where He is present and ready to bring His Kingdom even more. and as i took communion, i again told God that i will follow Him. even if it means some of the things above will be true. because He has put this deep love for Himself in me that i cannot deny, and i believe in the depths of my soul that His plans are the best ones. even if it means i have to say 'goodbye' waaaaaayyyy too often.

three old friends

my language teacher recently broke her leg. this is bad in any case .. but when one is 81 or 82 .. it can be pretty bad. the amazing thing .. this woman has been living in the same city for many years now (since before high school) .. and she happens to have a few friends that she has known almost that long. of the three that i've met so far, one has known her for 70 years -- and the other two for 50 years. that is amazing! talk about longevity of friendship and depth of relationship.

the other day, two of them were over and chatting with her, and taking care of her. asking to make sure that she was comfortable, adjusting her blankets to make sure that she was warm, trying to get her to eat more food (that they had brought!), all in all being wonderful to her. it was good to see that, to see how they care for each other and how comfortable they are together. talking over each other, asking about each other's kids and grandkids, catching up on all the people in their families .. very amazing. the people that i've been friends with longest (other than family!) are from seventh grade, and i don't talk to them all that often. the people i'm closest to are people i met in college, which means at the most i've known them for six years. guess we've got a long way to go!!